Smart card access control systems provide three key benefits: (1) central controller computers are not required; (2) the information on the access cards is more secure; and (3) the access cards make a broad variety of additional applications possible. Smart card systems use a design known as a totally distributed data base which makes it unnecessary to maintain an access data file. A smart card looks like an ordinary credit card and is a miniature computer packaged inside a plastic, card-sized container. When inserting a smart card into a reader at a protected access point, the reader determines if the card is valid, if it has expired, and if there is authorization for entry through a particular access point at a certain date and time. Information kept on smart cards is highly secure; no one can read the information contained in the card's memory without going through the smart card operating system. The widespread use of smart cards will promote better services and greater personal privacy.